Coriander (Dhania)

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So you would like to grow Coriander?

Ken and Winrose decided to grow coriander.
Coriander( also calles dhania) leaves mature
in 1 month. It is therefore a good crop to
plant while you wait for other seedlings
in the nursery to be ready to transplant.
Coriander can also be grown for its seeds.

Ken Winrose
Do a Soil Test
Coriander grows in a wide range of soils, but does best in well-drained, fertile loam
and sandy loam soils with pH 6-8. It does not like heavy rains or very wet soil.
Coriander prefers cooler temperatures. If you live in a hot area, make sure your
coriander has shade.
Ask CropNuts to come and do a soil test. They
will take samples of your soil from your shamba
to test. They will send you a report which will say:
• How healthy your soil is
• Which fertilizers to add to make your soil better
for growing coriander
• Which other crops will grow well in your soil.
Follow the advice on your soil test results. Green = nutrient levels are good
You will save money on fertilizers and
pesticides. You will get a bigger and better
Red = nutrient levels are bad
crop which will give you more harvest. 1
How do you find a market? How do you
 
do a budget?
Find out the average price of coriander in your area. You also need to find a buyer A budget is a plan of the income and costs of your business. It is for a specific
for your coriander. It is better to sell all of your cabbages to 1 buyer. period of time or a production cycle or season.
Item   Budget  
1. Find out your costs. Think of all of the things
PLACE you need to grow coriander. Think about seeds, Soil  Test   2,500/=  
PRODUCT PRICE SALE PROMOTE fertilizers and water. Find out how much they cost.
Fertiliser   50,000/=  
Is there a demand What price will Where will you How will you 2. Work out how long it will take for you to make
Seeds   25,000/=  
for coriander? you sell at? sell? advertize? a profit. If your business has high capital
investments, it may take several seasons to make Tools   5,000/=  
What are others Do some varieties Visit local shops, OLX? a profit.
producing? schools, hotels Labour   50,000/=  
make more 3. Work out your PROFIT:
money? and markets. Social media? Other  costs   XXXXX/=  
What does the income – costs = total profit
market expect? Can you make a Talk to your e.g. It costs 54,000/= to grow 1 acre of coriander. Each acre gives 2,000 kg of
Posters and flyers?
profit? neighbours. coriander. Each kg of coriander is sold for 60/=. This
is a total income of 120,000/=. Therefore:
expected income of 120,000/= – production costs of 54,000/= = a profit of
How will you water your crop? 66,000/=

If there is no rain, coriander needs watering 2-3 times a week. Watering can take What is a rolling budget?
up a lot of your time when you could be doing other work on your shamba. This is a budget that is updated on a regular basis. It covers the costs for each
week or month. It allows you to change your budget as you go along. e.g.
The DLTP Farmers decided to put in a drip irrigation system from SunCulture.
Date   Details   Budget   Money  out  

Drip irrigation systems:
   
• Use less water as the water from the pipe goes directly
to the plant roots. Week  2:     Fertiliser   4,500/=   4,400/=  
• Water is not wasted on weeds.
• Plants do not get wet and have less fungal diseases. 1-­‐7  Feb  2017   Labour   6,000/=   6,500/=  
• Once the drip lines are laid, you just have to turn on the
Miscellaneous  (any   5,000/=   2,800/=  
tap when you want to water.
costs  you  did  not  
expect)  
The DLTP farmers also decided to buy a Futurepump solar   TOTAL   15,500/=   13,700/=  
pump together. They saved a lot of money on electricity.
The pump works by using energy from the sun. You can even Week  3:   Labour   2,500/=   2,500/=  
charge your phone for mobile banking! 8-­‐15  Feb  2017   Miscellaneous   6,000/=   5,500/=  
You can pay off the cost of the Futurepump after 3 seasons.  
After this, your pumping will be free! Sometimes prices change. You can change your budget as you go. If your actual
expenses are the same or less than the budgeted expenses, you are on the right
track.
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Prepare your land Pests and Diseases
Plough your land. Take out stumps and break up lumps of soil. Mix in well-rotted Reduce pests and diseases by:
manure or compost. You will need 1 debe of manure per 1 metre square. Smooth • Using certified seeds, such as from Royal Seed
the soil surface. • Practising good field hygiene, such as keeping your tools clean
• Rotating your crops
Your soil test will tell you which fertilizers to add to your • Using pesticides and fungicides.
soil and how much. Usually you will be told to add an NPK
fertilizer at planting. This contains Nitrogen, Phosphorous
and Potassium, and sometimes other nutrients too. Pests
Mavuno Fertilizers makes fertilizers specifically for your crop.

Planting your Seeds

1. Make shallow lines or furrows in the soil Whitefly Thrips Aphids
30cm apart.
2. Spread Mavuno Green Leafy Vegetable
Whiteflies and Thrips are tiny white insects that suck the sap from the coriander
Fertilizer thinly in the furrows & mix with
leaves. Aphids are tiny insects that cause the coriander leaves to fold.
the soil. You need 80kg of fertilizer per acre.
30cm 3. Sow seeds 2-3 cm deep. Cover lightly Kill Whiteflies, Thrips and Aphids with both Nimbecidine and Final Flight.
with soil. You need 2kg of seeds for 1 acre. Nimbecidine helps to fight resistance to pesticides in the insects. Final Flight helps
to flush out the insects.
4. Water your seeds 2-3 times per week when
the soil is dry.

Buy certified dhania seeds from Royal Seed. Mix 30ml Nimbecidine with 20L water in a knapsack.
Certified seeds: Spray the plants 15 days after planting. Repeat every
1. Give high yields of good quality 15-20 days .
2. Are resistant to some pests and diseases
3. They grow fast, at the same rate, and strong. Mix 4g Final Flight with 20L of water in a knapsack.
Spray when you see thrips or other insects. Repeat
every 10 days.
It takes 7-10 days for coriander seeds
to germinate.
Fungal Diseases
When plants are 5-7 cm high, take Fusarium Wilt
out weak plants. Have 10-15cm
This attacks the stems. If you see brown stripes
between each plant in the row.
when you cut the stem of your coriander plant,
the plant has Fusarium Wilt. Healthy stems are
It will be 4-6 weeks until the leaves
green inside.
are ready to harvest.

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Powdery Mildew
Why keep records?
This attacks the leaves. It looks like
Keeping good crop-growing records will help you to run your business better. Keep
a white powder.
records on field history, problems faced, major activities like planting, spraying,
diseases, harvesting, etc.

Stem Rot Date   Details   Action  

This affects the stems of your coriander
plants. It can kill your crop. 21/02/17   Saw  a  white  powder  on  the   Applied  Control  
leaves  –  powdery  mildew?  
Treat Fusarium Wilt, Powdery Mildew and Stem Rot with Control. 23/02/17   Heavy  rain  today   Delay  irrigation  for  3  days.  
Mix 12g (1 tablespoon) Control with 20L of water in a knapsack.
Spray your coriander plants every 14 days. 25/02/17   Saw  some  weeds   Removed  and  burnt  weeds.  

Weeds  
What next?    

Weeds take water and nutrients from your crop. They  

Look back at your budget.
also hide pests and diseases. Take out weeds when
Have you made money from your first crop of coriander?
you see them.
What mistakes did you make? What have you learnt?
You can use herbicides, but only before planting.
Spraying your coriander with herbicides may kill your Now it is time to prepare your land for the seedlings of other crops
coriander plants! that have been growing well in your nursery for the past month!

Always follow instructions and wear protective gear

when using chemicals. Why should you rotate crops?
Crops take different nutrients from
Wear gum boots, overalls, rubber gloves and a mask.
the soil. They also have different
Keep chemicals away from children and animals.
pests and diseases. These can build
up if you plant the same crop again
and again.
Harvest
When growing coriander for its leaves, you can Reduce pests and diseases and keep
harvest the leaves 4-5 times during the growing your soil healthy by rotating your
season. This will give you 2.8-4 tonnes of crops. This is where you plant a crop
coriander leaves per acre. from a different family. You will have
healthier soil and a better crop. Cabbage Beans
Do the first harvest when the plants are 10-15cm
After coriander, do not grow crops in the same family as it such as carrots, parsley
high. More stems will grow.
and celery. You can grow cabbages or spinach.

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For more information on Coriander
To get a soil test, call Daktari Wa Udongo on +254 790 499190 or send an email
to CropNuts on support@cropnuts.com to find out the closest field agent in your
area.
Contact Osho Chemicals on 0711 045000 or email marketing@oshochem.com
or SMS 20560.
To buy coriander seeds, contact Royal Seed on 0734 257635 or email
customerservice@khs.co.ke
For drip, mist or solar-powered irrigation systems call SunCulture 0700 327002
Contact Mavuno Fertilizers on 0702 891 893 or email info@mavunofertilizers.com
Contact Futurepump on 0796 514409 or email DLTP@futurepump.com
Use our budgeting tool, Budget Mkononi on our website www.dontlosetheplot.tv
and learn the costs of growing coriander and how much profit you can make.
Sign up to our mobile service iShamba for expert advice on growing
coriander. Simply SMS the word ‘VIJANA’ to 21606.
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